Square Wild are a genre-bending, hard-hitting force of nature from Manchester, UK. Mixing a plethora of influences on a bed of heavy riffs and groove laden-rhythms, they’re hard to pigeon hole but easy to love. Punk in ethos but prog in dynamics, Square Wild truly are a mixing pot of fun, fury and finesse. We caught up with them to find out more, and took a look at their brand new album Otherling as well!
Interview
So you have recently released your debut album Otherling, can you describe how you approached the writing and recording process for it?
The writing came many years before we actually sat down to record the album, so it was written well in advance luckily! However, things changed naturally throughout the time we spent playing the songs live, so we incorporated those changes. It was a lot of hard work recording ourselves, and remotely, but we got there. We also realised we’re never recording remotely again as the back and forth cost us so much time. We’re so proud of the result though.
What can fans expect from Otherling?
You can expect a huge variety of styles, heavy riffs, ska sections impossible to not dance to, heavy layers, choral passages, big dynamic shifts and lyrics that vary from the fantastical to the relatable. We think this is an album for anyone who’s into a lot of different styles and anyone who’s into prog/rock with an edge.
When it came to choosing singles ahead of the release, what made you choose Sloth and Masquerade as the ‘representatives’ of the album?
We also did Pins and Mould and Proper Gander. We really wanted to make sure we were giving people a taste of all of our sides, and they all hit our dancey, chaotic nature as well as our dynamic progressive nature.
On a related note, which song on Otherling are you most proud of?
It’s different for everyone, but Nathan and Lucy are particular fans of Shadow Puppets. We worked hard getting the backing vocals right and they sound awesome, Lucy’s lyrics are clever and the delivery is excellent. The journey the song takes you on and the arrangement of so many different moving parts is so cool, it finishes so epically, and it’s one of the few things Nathan learned parts of on keys. He’s proud of his own musical growth knowing he can now emulate it live. Benedict however felt Masquerade was the most us condensed into a song – chaotic, colourful, tone changes on a whim, fun with a huge ending riff. Lucy also really enjoyed those soaring vocals at the end to finish the album with. Tomos thinks Witch has the biggest moments, but Masquerade is probably the best overall, we also all appreciate Hammerchest for being our only soft ballad.
Were there any songs or particular elements of the album’s sound that were more of a challenge to get right, or did everything go to plan?
With how long it took, almost everything was getting picked apart and put back together. There were different parts for different people. For example, Benedict spent a long time trying to write the middle section of Pins & Mould – trying to have a flowing bass section over some psychedelic parts that didn’t overtake the vibe was a challenge. But largely, recording the whole album remotely was the biggest challenge.
On the subject of sound – your sound is very unique – can you tell me how you created it?
No rules. We basically throw anything in and work on it and we all have completely different influences that seem to mesh together in certain places. We never picked a band we wanted to sound like, none of us have ever aimed for anything specific. It’s a blessing and a curse, but we’re really proud that we’re a band that most audiences that see us and reviewers that hear us can whole-heartedly call us unique. It’s not something you come across that often these days.
The artwork for Otherling is incredibly striking – who created it? Did you go to the artist with a specific idea in mind?
It was our own Lucy who did the artwork, as well as designed all the merch, the album booklet, the lot. We’re really lucky to have a team where we have big strengths outside of the music, meaning everything can be done in house. We all agreed we needed something that represented a huge mesh of elements, a Chimera came to mind and Lucy just designed that immediately. It was always an idea to have symbols for each of the songs as the border, and the tree is something we incorporated right at the beginning of our career. That tree will probably stay with us for life, as it’s a symbol of creativity, growth and resilience.
Moving onto live shows, how would you describe a Square Wild show to those who haven’t managed to see you yet?
The energy we bring to our live shows can’t be experienced through the recordings no matter how great they sound. We give everything on stage, it’s colourful, boisterous, powerful, fun and fierce. Not only that, we really love pulling other people into our madness. For example we brought on a 5 piece choir for our album launch who covered Lucy’s operatic parts, which sounded epic. We are now introducing a 3 piece brass section going forward too.
What’s been the best show you’ve ever played?
I think this is different for everyone, but we can probably all agree that Bloodstock was epic, seeing that many people there dancing was wild. The album launch was also epic, whilst one of Lucy’s favourites was in a tiny pub in Wales, with only 20 people there. We appreciate any show and have fun at all of them, it’s hard to pick them out after so many too. Ey Up Me Duck this year was particularly fun also and Not a Cult festival was a highlight last year.
And what about the strangest?
We get a lot of really strange gigs, that’s also really difficult to pick out of a sea of weird and wonderful.
What’s been your best experience in the business so far?
We think getting in the room and creating more music will always be the best thing about being in a band. We hate the admin that comes along with it and the social media pressures. We love gigs, but they can be tiring too. We also love meeting people, we have a great passion for making Square Wild somewhere people feel like family, and we certainly have made fans that feel like that. There’s no better feeling than affecting people in a positive way that sticks with them, it’s one of the main reasons we do what we do.
And finally, what have you got in the works for the rest of the year and beyond?
We have already got dates booked in February to record album 2, a shed load of gigs from the end of January onwards and also, rest. Being DIY really takes it out of you especially as most of us have full time jobs. So we’re recharging, ending the year with a bang at Bloodstock Winter Gathering on Dec 5th, then getting right back into it in February. We are only pushing harder, getting bigger and are so ready to hit next year hard!
Otherling review
The first thing that struck me about Otherling was the cover. Just seeing how intricate, detailed and human it looked immediately made me feel very excited about the music contained within the album, and it made me want to listen to it. When a band has made this much effort on a ‘first impression’, it really helps them to stand out from the crowd and it makes the music feel more impactful as a result.
Otherling feels like chaos, in the best possible way. You never quite know what to expect on each twist and turn the album takes, with Square Wild keeping you on your toes from start to finish. From the hypnotic tones of Pins And Mould to the funk of Sailor and the high-energy and almost aggressive-sounding Kill The King, you never quite know what to expect next. And yet despite the amalgamation of styles and sounds, it still feels like there is a unifying thread of consistency running through the album – this style is just uniquely Square Wild’s, and it totally works.
My personal favourite is Proper Gander (but the whole album is great as a whole). I love the frenetic ska vibe that the song has, and it just has such an excellent vibe and feeling – it’s one of those songs you can’t help but want to revisit. The brass section really adds a lot to it and I just love the noodling little guitar riff that does its own thing beneath the vocals as well.
Quite simply, Otherling is uniquely brilliant. Square Wild have really cooked up something special with this release, and it is clear that the time taken to create it was time well-spent because it stands out from the crowd and is just a massively engaging listen. Very keen to see how these songs translate in a live environment!
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